WAR: Gunmen Assassinates Iranian Diplomat in Iraq

A high level Iranian diplomat, Khalil Naimi was gunned down while sitting in his car near the Iranian Embassy. Before the assassination, Iran stated they would be sending an envoy into Najaf to help broker a solution in the Al-Sadr standoff.

Iran Tries to Resolve Al-Sadr Dispute; U.S. Commanders Say They Want More 'capability' in Iraq
Hours after the announcement, gunmen killed a high-ranking diplomat from the Iranian Embassy in Baghdad. It was unclear whether the killing was linked to the mediation efforts.

Khalil Naimi, the first secretary of the Iranian Embassy, was shot in the head while he was in his car near the embassy, Foreign Ministry official Mohammad Nouri told The Associated Press in Tehran.

I find it strange that with the claims being made by the U.S. that Iran is funding and promoting the resistance in Iraq, the Iraqi's would kill an Iranian diplomat. Perhaps the gunmen were not Iraqis after all?
* Upon further review of the article, there is no mention made to suggest if the "gunmen" were Iraqi's or not..so the title of the article has been changed.

[Edited on 4-15-2004 by worldwatcher]

Well, the question becomes was this part of the Iranian delegation that was supposed to be going to Iraq to talk them OUT of the offensives, kidnappings, etc. Because if it was, then it doesn't necessarily contradict the claims that Iran may be funding things.

If this guy wasn't part of it, then it's starts getting all confusing.

for some reason, I am thinking "independent non iraqi" gunmen had something to do with this shooting. Maybe it's the article about the 18,000 mercenaries in Iraq that put the thought in my head....

Originally posted by worldwatcher
I find it strange that with the claims being made by the U.S. that Iran is funding and promoting the resistance in Iraq, the Iraqi's would kill an Iranian diplomat. Perhaps the gunmen were not Iraqis after all?

I would suggest that they were Sunnis or external Islamic extremists.
Iran mediating and stopping a possible Shia uprising against the US is a definite negative to those who want instability within Iraq.